Taught by a Columbia University professorA Climb to the TOP
Public Speaking · Leadership · Emotional Intelligence · A Shot at an Ivy Rec Letter
A 5-day immersive summer workshop in Shanghai, taught in person by Chuck Garcia — a tenured Columbia University professor, bestselling author, 3x TED speaker, and former Wall Street executive. Standout students earn a real shot at a personal letter of recommendation from Professor Garcia — a genuine Ivy League faculty endorsement for their college application.
WeChat Ava: avayyou · Just ¥1,800 today to hold your seat · fully refundable until July 3.
Taught in person by an Ivy League professor
A tenured Columbia University professor, 3x TED speaker, and former Bloomberg / BlackRock / Citadel executive — Chuck himself teaches every session in Shanghai. Not a TA, not a recording.
A shot at a recommendation letter
Standout students can earn a personal letter of recommendation from Professor Garcia — a real Ivy-League professor endorsement that goes directly into a college application.
Skills mastered four to six years early
Five days of focused training in the public-speaking, leadership, and EQ skills usually only honed at university and beyond — a head start on every interview and classroom from here on.
Proven around the world
The same program. Already trusted by leading schools and institutions worldwide.
Before launching in Shanghai, this same workshop has trained hundreds of students and executives at Columbia University Engineering, Wiley Edge, GEMS Education, Futures Abroad, and the Emirates Institute of Finance — and this is the first time the program is officially being delivered in mainland China.
In their own words
Why students and former colleagues stay in touch with Chuck.
Verbatim notes from Chuck's students and former colleagues — now at Google, Netflix, MSCI, Brellium, the Wharton alumni community, and the Columbia Engineering Class of 2026.
About Chuck Garcia
The teacher who shapes how your child speaks for the rest of their life.
Chuck Garcia is a Columbia University Engineering professor and a global authority on leadership communication. He is the bestselling author of A Climb to the TOP, published in English, Chinese, and Spanish.
He spent 25+ years as a senior executive at Bloomberg, BlackRock, and Citadel. 3x TED speaker, mountaineer — and now, for the first time, teaching this workshop in person in Shanghai.
Students and executives Chuck has coached now sit at Google, Netflix, MSCI, Brellium, the Wharton alumni community, and across the Columbia Engineering Class of 2026 — many of whom still keep in touch as both former students and as colleagues.
Credentials
- Professor, Columbia University Engineering · Leadership Development
- Bestselling author: A Climb to the TOP (EN / ZH / ES editions)
- 3x TED speaker · Founder & CEO, Climb Leadership Institute
- 25+ years senior finance · Bloomberg · BlackRock · Citadel
- Global executive coach · UN, Harvard, MIT, and more
Program curriculum
Six modules over five days — a semester of training, condensed into one summer week.
9:00 AM – 3:00 PM daily. The course follows the same active & experiential learning pedagogy Chuck uses at Columbia University — frameworks in the morning, group practice and individual video feedback in the afternoon. Every student stands up and speaks every day.
- Mon · Day 1
Communicate with Power, Precision & Impact
Build the Ten Commandments of Great Communicators framework. Full-program video recording begins.
Public-speaking foundationsStage-anxiety management - Tue · Day 2
Executive Presence · Performing in High-Stakes Rooms
Train the core methods Chuck used to coach Wall Street executives — posture, eye contact, pauses, pacing. Afternoon: live practice in high-pressure simulations (interviews, presentations).
Body languageFirst impressionsInterview / presentation performance - Wed · Day 3
Emotional Intelligence (EQ) & IKIGAI
Tools for staying composed under pressure. Stoic philosophy and the IKIGAI exercise help your child understand who they are.
Emotional regulationSelf-awarenessResilience - Thu · Day 4
The Art of Improvisation
The "Yes, And" mindset — training in listening, collaboration, and quick thinking. Final presentation topics assigned in the afternoon.
ImprovisationTeam collaborationStorytelling - Fri · Day 5
Final Presentation · Family Ceremony
Morning rehearsal, afternoon formal presentation (parents welcome to attend). Every student receives a personalized BEFORE & AFTER video.
Final deliveryFamily witnessCertificate ceremony
Final deliverable
After 5 days, your child walks away with a full toolkit usually only honed at university.
Not a photo. Not a certificate. A visible, observable jump in capability. The clearest evidence: your child delivers a formal English presentation in front of family and friends — with a poise, voice, and presence that simply did not exist five days earlier.
Soft skills most students don't deliberately train in until university or early career — your child gets focused practice in five days.
Warren Buffett's classic line — strong public-speaking and communication can lift a professional's market value by 50% or more.
LinkedIn's global employer surveys consistently rank Communication and Collaboration among the top five soft skills employers want.
What your child takes home from these 5 days
- A personalized BEFORE & AFTER video — Day 1 opening vs. Day 5 final presentation. Usable for college essays and study-abroad interviews.
- Dual completion certificate co-issued by Climb Leadership Institute and Fintellect Learning.
- A signed copy of the Chinese edition of A Climb to the TOP, published by Sun Yat-sen University Press.
- The Ten Commandments of Great Communicators framework cards — Chuck's decade-honed public-speaking system, ready to use for life.
- Pre-workshop assessment + personal feedback — completed one week before class so Chuck knows each student's baseline.
- The Day 5 Family Ceremony — parents witness the final presentation and join the certificate moment.
- A real shot at a personal recommendation letter from Professor Garcia for students who stand out across the week — useable directly in college applications.
Unique program benefits
What makes this program one of a kind in China?
No summer camp or test-prep program in China combines all six of the elements below. That is why we call this workshop First of Its Kind.
Columbia professor — in Shanghai, in person.
Not a recorded lecture, not a teaching assistant, not a translated copy. Professor Chuck Garcia himself teaches the same syllabus, with the same interactive style, he uses at Columbia.
Watch your child grow — on tape — in five days.
Recorded from Day 1 morning to a Day 5 formal presentation. Students review their own BEFORE & AFTER footage side by side — a method almost unheard of in Chinese classrooms.
The Ten Commandments — taught here for the first time.
Chuck's Ten Commandments of Great Communicators, refined over a decade, are now taught in mainland China for the very first time.
What's taught at university — mastered in high school.
Executive presence, improvisation, emotional intelligence, performing under pressure — usually only honed at university and early career. Your child gets them 4–6 years earlier.
A real shot at an Ivy professor's recommendation.
Five days is enough for Professor Garcia to see how each student actually thinks, works, and grows. Standout students earn a personal letter of recommendation from Chuck — a real, current-Ivy-faculty endorsement that goes directly into a college application file.
Parents in the room — for the final presentation.
Day 5 afternoon: your child delivers their final English presentation in front of you and receives dual certificates from Climb Leadership Institute and Fintellect Learning.
Dates & pricing
Lock in your spot in July.
July 13–17, 2026, in person in Shanghai. Registration is open now and we recommend locking in early — Professor Garcia only returns to China once a year and this is the one week he's running.
Today’s commitment
A ¥1,800 deposit holds your seat. The remaining ¥16,200 is charged automatically from the same card on July 3, 2026 (10 days before the workshop) — deposit is fully refundable until then. Tuition is ¥18,000 total and includes all handouts, BEFORE & AFTER video, dual completion certificate, and lunch. Standout students earn a chance at a personal letter of recommendation from Professor Garcia.
What's included
- 5 days of in-person instruction
- Pre-workshop assessment + post-workshop video + personal feedback
- A signed copy of the Chinese edition of A Climb to the TOP
- Climb Leadership Institute / Fintellect dual completion certificate
- All handouts, framework cards, and case materials
- Coffee breaks and lunch
Why this program
What your child will need next, exam scores can't measure.
China's exam-driven schools turn out students who score high on paper. But the moment those students walk into a college interview, an Ivy Leagueseminar, or a one-on-one with an admissions reader, they discover the gap is somewhere their schools never trained: public speaking, real-time thinking, emotional self-management under pressure, and the ability to build a real relationship with a high-caliber adult. These are the soft skills that get sharpened at university and in early careers — they decide a lot of the rest of someone's trajectory.
My child's English is strong, but they freeze when asked to speak. Test scores and live expression are very different things — and the gap shows the moment they're abroad.
Systematic training in the BOOST framework (Build · Organize · Optimize · Strengthen · Transform) so your child can speak with clarity, confidence, and influence.
They're nervous and unfocused in interviews and presentations. Their on-stage performance is nothing like their one-on-one conversations.
We teach The Ten Commandments of Great Communicators — Chuck's time-tested public-speaking framework — paired with daily video review so stage anxiety becomes a trainable muscle, not a personality trait.
I want a real human in my child's college application — a meaningful mentor relationship, ideally a recommendation that actually carries weight.
Direct teaching by an Ivy League professor. Standout students can earn a personal letter of recommendation from Professor Garcia — the kind of credible endorsement that most extracurriculars cannot produce.
I'm worried about their EQ and resilience under pressure. When challenged, they shut down or avoid instead of working through it.
Integrated Emotional Intelligence and Stoicism modules, combined with the IKIGAI self-discovery exercise, build a mature, stable internal system that holds up under stress.
“Improve your communication skills, and increase your value in the marketplace by 50%.”
The one-page brief
Everything that matters, on one page.
Dates, pricing, who it's for, Chuck's background, and what's included — all on a single sheet. Open it on your phone, save it for later, or read it with your child and the other parent before deciding whether to hold a seat.
Next steps
Seats are limited. Give your child a summer they will never forget.
Add Ava on WeChat to schedule a 1:1 conversation about your child, confirm seat reservation, payment, and invoicing.
© Fintellect Learning · Climb Leadership Institute · Photos shown are from prior cohorts of the same workshop run by Chuck Garcia in the UAE, China, and the United States. Final venue, payment, and invoicing details are confirmed in writing after registration.